1. Read the label carefully and treat in accordance with the label recommendations.
2. It is essential that every sheep is treated to achieve lice control. Ensure a complete muster. If possible, mark sheep as they are treated to ensure untreated sheep can be easily identified.
3. When using saturation dips ensure saturation to skin level. Most saturation dips require 2-6 weeks wool growth for sufficient wool and grease to ‘hold’ the dip. Pour-on treatments are best applied off-shears. Flexolt^® oral lice treatment can be used in any length of wool, but ideally time treatment to coincide with shearing as treatment off-shears will achieve optimum lice control.
4. Shearing with flat combs will ensure that pour-ons are applied to skin level when treating off-shears. Ensure sheep are cleanly shorn, with no tufts of wool remaining.
5. Ideally treat all sheep at the same time. Ensure that mobs yet to be treated are isolated from treated mobs otherwise reinfestation may occur.
6. Check that the applicator has been calibrated and is accurately dispensing the recommended dose. Weigh sheep before treatment and dose the mob to the heaviest animal by liveweight. Do not underdose.
7. If applying a pour-on, apply with a T-Bar from the poll (between the ears) to the tail down the middle of the backline. Do not deviate from the spine. If you are unable to apply product evenly all the way down the backline using the label dose, increase the dose to ensure the entire backline area is covered.
8. Treatment must be done at least 4 weeks prior to lambing to allow sufficient time to achieve lice control. If it is later than this, there is a risk lice may be transferred on to lambs.
9. DO NOT mix treated sheep with untreated sheep.
10. Maintain a stock-proof boundry. Stock-proof fences are essential to prevent reinfestation from outside sources.
11. Prevent reinfestation of lice by treating introduced sheep and quarantining them from all other treated or lice-free sheep until certain they are free of lice.

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For a simple and easy way to remember the above Lice Management Principles refer to the B DAMS 4 LICE acronym here

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